Opportunity
Traditional blood pressure monitoring methods, such as oscillometry-based cuff measurements or applanation tonometry, face significant limitations in continuous and long-term blood pressure monitoring. These methods often require bulky equipment, trained medical personnel, and are limited to sporadic measurements, which fail to capture dynamic blood pressure variations over time. Moreover, existing wearable sensors lack the precision to measure localized pulse wave velocity (PWV), a critical parameter for accurate blood pressure estimation. The absence of a portable, self-powered, and high-accuracy sensor for continuous blood pressure monitoring at home or in clinical settings creates a pressing need for innovation. This patent addresses these gaps by introducing a flexible, wireless, and miniaturized sensor capable of real-time, continuous blood pressure measurement without professional intervention.
Technology
The patent proposes a portable blood pressure sensor comprising a sensing device, a force-generation unit, a processor, and flexible encapsulation layers. The sensing device includes two piezoelectric layers (PZT) fixed at a precise distance (14.5–15.5 mm) to measure localized PWV. A micro-pump inflates miniature airbags (5.5–6.5 mm diameter) to apply adjustable backpressure (0–12 kPa) to the PZT layers, enhancing signal accuracy. The system uses an XGBoost-based machine learning model to process piezoelectric responses, extracting features like systolic peak time and diastolic notch time from continuous waveforms. Key innovations include:
- Dual-PZT Design: Measures both arterial pulse waves and PWV simultaneously for higher accuracy.
- Closed-Loop Backpressure: Micro-airbags ensure consistent contact pressure, adapting to skin dynamics.
- Embedded AI: The XGBoost model correlates waveform features (e.g., foot point, dicrotic notch) with blood pressure, achieving clinical-grade precision (±4.61 mmHg for systolic pressure).
Advantages
- Continuous Monitoring: Enables 24/7 blood pressure tracking without cuffs or clinical setups.
- High Accuracy: Dual-PZT and PWV integration reduce errors compared to single-point sensors.
- Wearability: Flexible, lightweight design (15 mm × 35 mm × 4 mm) allows wristband integration.
- Self-Powered: Piezoelectric layers generate signals without external power.
- Wireless Connectivity: Bluetooth/Wi-Fi modules transmit data to smartphones or cloud servers.
Application
- Home Healthcare: Long-term hypertension management for elderly or high-risk patients.
- Clinical Diagnostics: Real-time monitoring during surgeries or ICU care.
- Fitness Tracking: Integration into smartwatches for cardiovascular health insights.
- Telemedicine: Remote blood pressure data sharing with healthcare providers.
